Finland’s public broadcaster Yle has confirmed that it will air Melodifestivalen 2026. This move ensures Finnish Eurovision fans can follow the Swedish national final as part of Yle’s Eurovision season programming.
What we know about Melodifestivalen 2026
30 songs will participate in Melodifestivalen 2026, of which two songs will directly qualify for the final from each semi-final. The direct qualifiers will comprise 10 entries in the final.
The entry that placed third in each semi-final will still have a chance to make it to the final (which will be made up of five entries). Out of the five participants who placed third in each semi-final, the act with the highest score across all of the Semi-Finals will automatically be given a place in the final, with the remaining four acts fighting it out for the remaining spot. The act with the highest points from the vote will then be awarded the last spot in the final.
As usual, Sweden’s Eurovision 2026 representative will be selected via a mixture of televoting and an international jury.
Finland’s Eurovision journey
Finland debuted in the 1961 Eurovision Song Contest, finishing 10th with Laila Kunnunen’s “Valoa ikkunassa.” Since then, they have competed 56 times and appeared in the final 48 times. Finland has finished in the top 10 an impressive 14 times. They have won the contest once in 2006, with Lordi’s performance of “Hard Rock Hallelujah” getting 292 points.
Finland’s most recent entry was “ICH KOMME” by Erika Vikman. Competing in the second semi-final, Erika qualified for the final and would eventually finish in 11th place with 196 points. Of these, 108 came from the televote, while the jury awarded her 88 points.
Finnish fans, stay tuned and be ready to support your favourite Melodifestivalen act!? Who will you support? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And don’t forget to follow That Eurovision Site on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Threads, Tumblr, and Bluesky for all the latest updates on Sanremo and Eurovision 2026!
News source: areena.yle.fi
Photo credit: SVT
Tetiana Viznytsia 
Rory Gannon